“I am permanently moderated at the Guardian for once alluding to organised hasbara trolls flooding the comment sections, and linking to sites where you could download apps like GIYUS and Megaphone which might cause this to happen.”

The attacks on free speech by pro-Israel activists are relentless — and they keep escalating. Increasingly the vibe is reminiscent of post-World War II Eastern Europe during its worst authoritarian excesses. Follow the single party line or else. And these oppressive activities are being conducted in the name of defending “our freedoms.”

“In order for Stephen to remain in parish ministry, I have therefore asked for – and received from him – a solemn undertaking, in writing, that he is to refrain entirely from writing or speaking on any theme that relates, either directly or indirectly, to the current situation in the Middle East or to its historical backdrop.”

The terms Orwellian, Stalinist, etc. come immediately to mind. Total thought control on the subject of Israel — with severe punishments for voicing independent thinking of any kind.

There have been hundreds of assaults on free speech by pro-Israel activists over recent years — and yet they continue to hold up Israel and Zionism as a beacon of Western democratic values.

“Israel is the only country on the planet that doesn’t seem bothered at all by the rise of ISIS.”

Israel is surely rejoicing over the rise of ISIS, which is providing a propaganda bonanza for neoconservatives who have been promoting the Clash of Civilizations and Global War on Terror.

Many of ISIS’s cartoonish exercises in political communications sound like they were inspired by Pamela Geller or Daniel Pipes.

ISIS is very good for Israel in the same way that 9/11 was very good for Israel — as acknowledged by none other than Benjamin Netanyahu. ISIS may succeed in pushing “the West” and “the Muslim world” into an apocalyptic confrontation (holy war) that will enable Greater Israelists to achieve all their maximalist political objectives.

BOOMER: “What, never? Well, never since the long-ago days of President George W Bush anyway.”

Not even George W. Bush was willing to go to war against Iran — he resisted pressure from Israel and the Israel lobby to do so. Benjamin Netanyahu is in a class by himself on the warmongering front.

If the Israeli government were not trying to whip up war fever in the United States, the GOP would not be agitating for an American war against Iran. This is all about Israel. None of our European allies are interested in getting involved in a war with Iran. GOP leaders like Lindsey Graham and John Boehner are regurgitating talking points that have been prepared for them by the Israel lobby — they have been well-paid for their efforts.

George W. Bush’s talking points for the Iraq War were all written by PNAC/Commentary Magazine neoconservatives operating on behalf of the Israeli government and Likud/Greater Israel Zionism — Douglas Feith, William Kristol, Elliott Abrams, Paul Wolfowitz and company.

But one sees many high-profile Jews making this claim all the time — to be speaking for “the Jews” or “the Jewish people” — starting at the top of the Jewish establishment with Benjamin Netanyahu and including many Commentary Magazine neoconservatives.

Why do they do it?

I can’t remember ever hearing an American claim to speak for “the Irish people” or “the English people” — the attitude and language would be too bizarre and bombastic to contemplate.

I am as curious as ever about what factors — psychological, cultural or otherwise — drive this behavior.

During the 1930s, Nazis claimed to speak for “the German people” and Italian Fascists claimed to speak for “the Italian people” — those are the historical precedents that come to mind. During that era, many Germans and Italians were in the grip of mystical, messianic and militant ethnic collectivism.

Many Americans — especially Christian evangelicals — have been persuaded by an endless stream of propaganda that Benjamin Netanyahu is in fact speaking for “the Jewish people.” It is going to be extremely difficult to undo this belief.

Regarding Jonathan Freedland: from the Amazon.com summary of Sam Bourne’s “The Final Reckoning”:

“When a man’s death at the United Nations turns out to be more than just an accidental shooting, unsuspecting Tom Byrne is plunged headlong into a deadly world of hidden fellowships, unforgivable crimes, and a 60-year quest for justice. From Sam Bourne—the #1 international bestselling author of The Righteous Men and The Last Testament—comes this fast-paced, gripping, and provocative thriller exposing the last great mystery of the Second World War. Perfect for fans of Raymond Khoury, Jo Nesbø, and James Rollins, Bourne’s The Final Solution is a tense and twisting tale of Nazi soldiers and Jewish Avengers, based on the true story of WWII survivors taking vengeance for the Holocaust into their own hands.”